TY - JOUR T1 - Sarcoidosis from bench to bedside: a state-of-the-art series for the clinician JF - European Respiratory Journal JO - Eur Respir J SP - 14 LP - 16 DO - 10.1183/09031936.00070712 VL - 40 IS - 1 AU - Vincent Cottin AU - Joachim Müller-Quernheim Y1 - 2012/07/01 UR - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/40/1/14.abstract N2 - First described in 1899 [1], sarcoidosis is a multi-organ granulomatous disorder that remains an enigma and challenges researchers and clinicians due to its unknown aetiology, variegated presentation and an unpredictable, and occasionally severe or even fatal, outcome despite therapy. As over 90% of patients have involvement of the lungs and thoracic lymph nodes, most chest physicians encounter sarcoidosis regularly in their practice, and have to manage this disorder with a risk of delayed or inadequate care [1].Sarcoidosis may cause significant morbidity, as it persists as a chronic disease in approximately one-third of cases [1]. It most commonly affects individuals aged 20–39 yrs [2]. The prevalence of disease varies widely throughout the world and in ethnic groups, with a mean estimate of 15 cases per 100,000 persons, roughly corresponding to one in 6,000 persons in the general population [3]. In Ireland, England, central Europe and Scandinavia the prevalence ranges between 40 and 60 cases per 100,000 and associations with environmental and occupational exposure have been reported [4–8].In the past, the European Respiratory Journal (ERJ) has disseminated advances in knowledge of sarcoidosis and is committed to doing so consistently. To this end, the ERJ has, in the June issue, started a new series on sarcoidosis that will provide an in-depth overview of the tremendous progress made in this field in recent years. This series of articles intends to provide readers with the most up-to-date and comprehensive reviews. The authors are among the world’s leading experts in the field of sarcoidosis, and the articles are intended to be practically oriented and relevant for practicing physicians without neglecting the cutting edge of research. Topics developed in the series were carefully chosen as those with … ER -